Chapter 134: How Do We Meet?

I stared at Sylvia for a few seconds.

The moment she walked through the door, the strange emptiness inside me disappeared.

I had been worried only a moment ago. My heart had been beating too fast, and I had been wondering where she had gone. I had even been about to pull at the wires attached to my body just to get out of bed and find her.

But now she was standing right in front of me. Somehow, just seeing her was enough to make me feel calm again.

I didn’t understand it. I looked away quickly when I realized she was watching me.

"Were you looking for me?" Sylvia asked again. Her voice was gentle, but there was a small hint of amusement in it.

I swallowed.

"No." The answer came out too quickly.

Sylvia raised an eyebrow. I could feel her eyes on me.

"I wasn’t looking for you," I added, trying to sound more convincing.

She didn’t say anything immediately. Her eyes moved down to the wires I had almost touched, and she looked back at my face.

"You weren’t looking for me?"

I shook my head. "No."

Her lips slowly curved into a smile.

I immediately knew she didn’t believe me.

"I just wanted to get out of bed," I muttered.

"You were about to pull out your wires."

"I wasn’t," I answered immediately.

She gave me another amused look. I pressed my lips together.

Maybe I had been, but I wasn’t going to admit it.

Sylvia pulled the chair closer to my bed and sat down. The chair made a soft scraping sound against the floor before becoming still.

For a moment, neither of us spoke. She simply looked at me.

There was something different about the way Sylvia looked at me.

It wasn’t like the way Camila looked at me. It wasn’t like the way Daniela looked at me either.

There was something softer in her eyes.

Something that made me feel like I was the only person in the room.

I shifted slightly under her gaze.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing," she answered, smiling.

"Then why are you staring at me?" I asked calmly.

"Because you’re cute."

My face immediately became warm, and I looked away.

I didn’t know why her words affected me so much. I didn’t even remember being with her.

She was still almost a stranger to me, and yet, whenever she came close, my body reacted before my mind could understand what was happening.

Sylvia leaned toward me. I instinctively moved back a little until my shoulders touched the pillow behind me.

She didn’t stop. She only leaned closer, slowly, giving me enough time to move away if I wanted to.

But I didn’t.

Her hand came up. Her fingers were warm when they touched my cheek. She gently brushed her thumb across my skin.

The touch was so soft that I almost forgot how to breathe.

I stared at her.

Sylvia’s eyes remained on mine.

I could hear the quiet beeping of the machine beside my bed. The sound was steady and almost comforting, but my heartbeat was completely different.

It was fast... too fast.

I swallowed and nervously bit my lower lip.

Sylvia’s eyes immediately dropped to my lips.

I noticed, and somehow, knowing she had noticed made my face burn even more.

Her thumb remained against my cheek. She looked at my lips for another second before slowly meeting my eyes again.

"Babe, stop that," she murmured. "You’re bringing out the beast in me."

My eyes widened.

My entire face became hot, and I quickly turned my head away.

I didn’t know where to look.

The white wall suddenly became very interesting. The machine beside me became interesting. Even the blanket over my legs seemed more interesting than Sylvia’s face.

I swallowed hard.

Why did my heart beat so fast when she said things like that?

Why did my body react to only her voice?

Why did a simple touch from her make my skin feel warm?

Fuck.

I pressed my lips together, trying to calm myself down.

It didn’t work.

Sylvia chuckled softly. The sound made my embarrassment worse.

I glanced at her from the corner of my eye.

She was smiling. Not the kind of smile that made fun of me.

It was softer and affectionate. That somehow made my heart beat even faster.

I looked away again.

Sylvia leaned closer. I felt her breath against the side of my face before her lips came near my ear.

My body immediately became tense.

"Are you shy?" she whispered.

The warmth of her breath sent a strange shiver down my neck. Before I could answer, her lips touched my ear in a soft kiss.

I froze.

My fingers tightened around the blanket. I could feel the warmth spreading across my face all the way down to my neck.

Sylvia pulled back just enough to look at me.

I couldn’t meet her eyes. I didn’t know what was happening to me.

I didn’t know this woman, but my body seemed to remember something my mind had forgotten.

Sylvia gently touched my cheek again.

"Even if you don’t remember me," she said quietly, "your body does."

I finally looked at her. Her expression had become softer. There was no teasing in her eyes anymore. Only warmth.

"Don’t worry," she continued. "We’ll make new memories."

Something about those words touched me deeper than I expected.

New memories.

Her fingers were still resting gently against my cheek before slowly moving away.

"What if I never remember?" I asked. My voice came out quieter than I intended.

Sylvia didn’t answer immediately.

She studied my face for a moment, and then she reached for my hand. Her fingers slipped between mine carefully, as though she was afraid I might pull away.

"I don’t know," she admitted. "But I’m not going anywhere."

I looked at her. "You’re not?"

She shook her head.

"No." Her thumb moved slowly across the back of my hand. "You don’t have to remember everything today. You don’t have to force yourself to remember me."

She paused.

"If your memories come back tomorrow, I’ll be here." Her eyes softened. "If they come back next month, I’ll still be here."

I stared at her. "And if they don’t?"

Sylvia squeezed my hand gently. "Then I’ll introduce myself to you over and over again."

My throat suddenly felt tight. "You’ll do that?"

"Of course." She smiled. "I’ll tell you my name. I’ll tell you everything you want to know. I’ll tell you how we met, what you liked, what you hated, the things that made you angry, and all the silly things you used to do."

I couldn’t help the small smile that appeared on my lips. "Silly things?"

"A lot of them."

I narrowed my eyes. "You’re making things up."

Sylvia laughed softly. "No. I’m not."

I watched her for a moment. The sound of her laughter felt strangely comforting.

I didn’t know why.

Everything about her felt confusing.

My mind told me that she was a stranger, but something deeper inside me didn’t agree.

Sylvia reached down and held my hand. I looked down at our joined hands again.

Her palm was warm, but mine felt cold.

She noticed and rubbed her thumb over my fingers. "Your hands are cold."

"I just woke up," I replied quietly.

She rubbed them gently between both of hers. The warmth slowly returned to my fingers.

I watched her without saying anything.

She was so comfortable around me. Like she had done this many times before.

Maybe she really had.

Maybe this was normal for us.

Maybe I had once looked at her the same way she was looking at me now.

The thought made something ache inside my chest.

I didn’t like forgetting. I didn’t like waking up and seeing people whose names meant nothing to me.

I didn’t like knowing that there were memories inside my own mind that I couldn’t reach. But when Sylvia was close, the fear became quieter.

I slowly lifted my free hand. Sylvia looked at me curiously.

I hesitated before touching her cheek. Her skin was warm beneath my fingertips. She became still.

I studied her face closely. Everything about her seemed strangely familiar.

I frowned slightly.

"I don’t remember you," I whispered. "But I feel like I should." I slowly lowered my hand. "What if I never remember the way I felt about you?"

Sylvia’s eyes flickered with something painful for a second, but she quickly hid it behind a gentle smile. "Then I’ll let you feel it again."

I stared at her.

She smiled. "There’s no rush."

The machines continued beeping quietly beside us.

I looked at her hand still holding mine. Then I looked into her eyes. "Tell me something."

"What?"

"How did we meet?"

Sylvia smiled a real smile this time. She leaned back slightly in the chair but didn’t let go of my hand.

"That," she said softly, "is a long story."

I raised an eyebrow. "Then tell me."

Her smile grew. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Yes."

Sylvia looked at me for a moment before squeezing my hand.

"Okay, Babe."